[ESPN] Astros' Rotation an Unheralded Bunch

eric.81 · Mar 17, 2011

Nice writeup and video on our rotation with a focus on our "hands on" pitching coach Brad Arnsberg. Lock if someone beat me to this.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/spring2011/columns/story?columnist=crasnick_jerry&id=6224560

Jerry Crasnick said:

By Jerry Crasnick
ESPN.com

KISSIMMEE, Fla. -- Houston Astros lefty Wesley Wright is working on a new sidearm delivery this year, so pitching coach Brad Arnsberg arrived at the team's spring training site before 6 a.m. on Tuesday to study video and come up with a few ideas to aid in the process. The Astros were scheduled to play a game in Sarasota -- roughly 240 miles roundtrip -- so Arnsberg jumped in his car at 10:40 and hustled over to Ed Smith Stadium to watch top prospect Jordan Lyles and five other pitchers throw in a Grapefruit League game against Baltimore.

Major League Baseball coaches work long hours for generally modest pay, so Arnsberg isn't alone in his dedication. It was his agenda item between the video work and the commute that substantiated the notion that he goes beyond the call of duty.

Left-hander J.A. Happ, who stayed behind at Osceola County Stadium with several other Houston pitchers, wanted to work on his cutter and his fastball command to the glove side. So he threw a bullpen session mid-morning from the mound outside the clubhouse. Squatting behind the plate and urging him on with fist pumps and positive energy: Pitching coach Brad Arnsberg.

Even a big league pitcher throwing at 70 or 80 percent is capable of doing some damage with an errant throw or the usual late movement. So a 47-year-old guy who catches him with no mask or chest protector must have a little daredevil in him by nature. On the list of hazardous jobs, this ranks somewhere between window-washing skyscrapers and handling publicity for Charlie Sheen.

"He's worn a lot of pitches in the knee,'' Happ said. "It actually makes you concentrate quite a bit, because I don't want to hit him. Nobody wants to hit him.''

Former big leaguer Doug Brocail, now a special assistant to Astros GM Ed Wade, pitched professionally for 23 years and can't recall one pitching coach who caught him in the bullpen -- let alone with no equipment. But that can't dissuade Arnsberg from summoning the Pudge Rodriguez within. He's convinced that nothing helps him assess a pitcher's release point or movement better than squatting down and judging it from the hitter's perspective.

"It just shows my idio-cracy,'' said Arnsberg, who is also adept at inventing new words. "If they drill me, it's my fault.''

The Astros might ultimately find a new identity now that Jeff Bagwell, Craig Biggio and Lance Berkman are no longer in the lineup, but right now it's all about pitching -- specifically, the starting rotation. Even though Wade traded ace Roy Oswalt to Philadelphia in late July, the Astros finished tied for second in the National League with the San Francisco Giants with 95 quality starts (one fewer than the Chicago Cubs). Houston's rotation also ranked second to the Giants in MLB with 857 strikeouts.

It was a collaborative effort:

• Brett Myers, sometimes dominant, sometimes exasperating in eight seasons with the Phillies, emerged as one of the National League's most reliable starters. He became the first pitcher since Curt Schilling of the 2002 Diamondbacks to go six innings or more in his first 32 appearances.

• Wandy Rodriguez went 8-2 with a 2.03 ERA after June 24, and finished the season with 13 straight quality starts. The Astros rewarded him with a three-year, $34 million contract extension in January.

• Bud Norris, considered Houston's top prospect for the past couple of years, finished 9-10 with a 4.92 ERA. But he averaged more than a strikeout per inning, set a Minute Maid Park record with 14 K's against the Pirates in August, and improved his career record against the Cardinals to 5-1 with a 2.27 ERA. When Albert Pujols jokingly referred to him as "Chuck Norris,'' St. Louis beat writers had a field day making Twitter comparisons between the two.

Among the most pithy: "Bud Norris laces all of the baseballs he uses in his starts -- with red barb wire. He uses the leftover to floss.''

And: "Roger Clemens' orange Hummer runs on Bud Norris' sweat -- and gets 50 miles to the ounce.''

Norris modestly downplays the tough talk. "Luckily enough, I've had my best stuff on those days,'' he said.

The Houston pitchers don't lack for mentors. Arnsberg and Burt Hooton, pitching coach for Triple-A Round Rock, have their fingerprints all over the proceedings in Kissimmee. They're complemented by Astros bullpen coach Jamie Quirk, whose résumé and people skills make you wonder why he's not mentioned more frequently as a managerial candidate.

Quality effort
How the Astros' top four starting pitchers in 2011 fared last season:

GS IP QS ERA
Brett
Myers 33 223.2 24 3.14
J.A.
Happ 16 87.1 9 3.40
Wandy
Rodriguez 32 195.0 23 3.60
Bud
Norris 27 153.2 10 4.92

"I was listening to Arny and Burt Hooton the other day and I swear to God I left there going, 'Am I stupid?' '' Brocail said. "I left there feeling like an idiot. When those two guys talk pitching, it's like sitting down and listening to Ted Williams and Tony Gwynn talk hitting.''

Arnsberg, in his second year with the Astros, has previously worked as pitching coach in Montreal, Florida and Toronto. He received rave reviews from A.J. Burnett, Roy Halladay and several others, and he's generated similar sentiments among his current disciples in Houston.

"There are no words to give him all the compliments and praise he deserves,'' Norris said. "He goes out there and individually gets to know every guy. Most pitching coaches might see something right away and jump on it. He really wants to get to know you first and see how your mind works and what your thought processes are.''

Brocail has seen the phenomenon unfold from the outside, and he thinks Arnsberg's bond with his pitchers is fueled by an empathy that can't be faked. When they struggle, he internalizes it.

"He really, truly cares about what happens to guys,'' Brocail said. "He's like a big brother, and having that relationship puts pitchers at ease. If they have a failed day, they know that he's hurting right along with them. I'm around the ballpark a lot in spring training, and I see him on that treadmill trying to run the bad days out of that pitching staff.''

Arnsberg oversees an eclectic group in Houston. Happ, an Illinois native, studied U.S. history at Northwestern and comes across as the cerebral type. He recently conferred with former Phillies teammate Raul Ibanez at the batting cage, and they agreed to keep in touch and exchange book recommendations.

Happ's given name is James Anthony, but his father and paternal grandfather are both named James, and he carved out his own niche in school by signing his papers J.A. Some teammates call him J.A., others refer to him as Jay, and a lot of fans and casual observers stray off course and call him "A.J.''

Norris, 26, was named David Stefan Norris Jr. after his father, and the family referred to him as "Little D'' when he was a toddler. That all changed when he turned 3 and the family went out to eat at a Mexican restaurant back home in Northern California. All the men at the table ordered Budweisers, and Little D observed that he would like a Bud as well.

"The waitress told us, 'He's not allowed to have that,' '' Norris recalled. "My dad said, 'Don't worry about it. He's a Bud man.' It's stuck ever since.''

It's stuck to the point that David Stefan Norris Jr. ceased to exist, for all practical purposes.

"My grandmother called me David for the longest time,'' Norris said. "Now I call her on the phone and she says, 'Hey Bud.' That still catches me off guard.''

According to FanGraphs, Norris packs the most heat among Houston's starters with an average fastball velocity approaching 94 mph. Myers and Rodriguez, in contrast, average between 89 and 90. Last year Rodriguez threw his curveball 36.4 percent of the time, easily the highest ratio in the majors, and Myers finally jettisoned hardheadedness for a more subtle approach. At age 30, he's the Astros' resident staff sage, going from locker to locker and sharing tips on baseball and life.

"He's learned to pitch a little bit,'' Arnsberg said. "In Philly he was a chucker. He was 96 or 97 miles an hour. Now he knows that hitting spots is way more important. I told him, 'I'd rather see you pitch at 88 and hit your spot and get in your lane than rear back and try to throw one 94 when it's probably not there in the first place.' ''

As successful as the Houston pitchers were after the All-Star break, that momentum will be a challenge to sustain. The staff took a hit early in spring training when Jason Castro, one-half of the team's catching tandem with Humberto Quintero, suffered a season-ending knee injury. In addition, Norris has been bothered by a hamstring strain and the team is cautiously monitoring Rodriguez, who has tendinitis in his left shoulder. The Astros are still waiting to see how the fifth starter competition plays out between Nelson Figueroa and Ryan Rowland-Smith.

The baseball world anticipates regression just as eagerly as it celebrates upstarts. But with Arnsberg's prompting and lots of preparation, Houston's pitchers will never have to worry about might-have-beens.

"He makes boys into men on the mound,'' Brocail said. "If you get in trouble or hit a down spot, you know he's going to be the first one there picking you up.''

The Houston staff always knows where to find Arnsberg in Florida: He's at the ballpark before dawn, with his catcher's mitt within easy reach.

Jerry Crasnick is a senior writer for ESPN.com. Click here to purchase a copy of his book, "License to Deal," published by Rodale. Crasnick can be reached via e-mail.

Follow Jerry Crasnick on Twitter: @jcrasnick
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xcrunner51 · Mar 17, 2011

The Astros rotation is the Rockets of baseball rotations. Lots of solid players but no studs.

rockets934life · Mar 17, 2011

xcrunner51 said: ↑

The Astros rotation is the Rockets of baseball rotations. Lots of solid players but no studs.
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Wandy was probably the best LH pitcher in the NL for 2/3 of last season, problem was the first 1/3 he was the worst.

I think Wandy has the potential to be a stud this season and Myers a workhorse. Norris and Happ are the real wild cards, Happ pretty sure he will live up to his #3 status and get you 13-15 wins with a nice ERA but Norris could go either way. If Norris responds then we might have something to talk about come August, if not then Lyles, Hernandez and Abad might see substantial time come the 2nd half of the season.

cardpire · Mar 17, 2011

xcrunner51 said: ↑

The Astros rotation is the Rockets of baseball rotations. Lots of solid players but no studs.
Click to expand...

a fair comparison, but I think that's a much better formula for potential mlb success than nba. it's actually a pretty impressive rotation and about as good as you can ask for with a team with as low as payroll as ours this season.

i may be in the minority, but myers worries the hell out of me this year. if we want to contend for the division, he's going to have to match what he did last year, with almost no wiggle room. can he do it? sure, but last year could also have been a massive fluke, and he could just as easily return to the 4+ ERA pitcher that he was for the rest of his career. he is really the key to the season in my opinion.

looking forward to seeing how it all shakes out though. could be a fun year. i wish castro didn't go down. there would be a case for optimism at every position on the field if he didn't. i thought barmes was a bum, and my thoughts on him even changed when harold reynolds said the other night that he's his prediction for the surprise steal of the offseason.

go stros.

dharocks · Mar 17, 2011

cardpire said: ↑

i may be in the minority, but myers worries the hell out of me this year. if we want to contend for the division, he's going to have to match what he did last year, with almost no wiggle room. can he do it? sure, but last year could also have been a massive fluke, and he could just as easily return to the 4+ ERA pitcher that he was for the rest of his career. he is really the key to the season in my opinion.
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I'd be concerned too. Fluky-low HR/FB ratio, and his fastball has always been garbage. On the bright side, his slider/cutter (not totally sure what it is) was a really good pitch last year, maybe he can sustain that. And his curve's always been good.

I think it would be optimistic, but not unrealistic, to expect ~200 innings and an ERA in the high-3s this season. For $10MM/year, that's decent value. But I'd be very surprised if he performs as well as he did last year.

HAYJON02 · Mar 18, 2011

We should offer T-Mac a spot. It would be entertaining.

DoitDickau · Mar 18, 2011

dharocks said: ↑

I'd be concerned too. Fluky-low HR/FB ratio, and his fastball has always been garbage. On the bright side, his slider/cutter (not totally sure what it is) was a really good pitch last year, maybe he can sustain that. And his curve's always been good.

I think it would be optimistic, but not unrealistic, to expect ~200 innings and an ERA in the high-3s this season. For $10MM/year, that's decent value. But I'd be very surprised if he performs as well as he did last year.
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yea Myers will probably be a disaster. I guess it's only 24 million (with the buyout)

meh · Mar 18, 2011

I believe Jerry Crasnick discarded his other article, "Astros' lineup a non-existent bunch". The current rotation, if given the lineup of Astros 5-10 years ago, would put this team in contention for a playoff spot. Unfortunately, they'll put up good ERAs and no run support.

At least with the Rockets, things can change quickly by adding just one impact player. With the Astros, where are you going to find enough hitters to do anything?

dharocks · Mar 18, 2011

meh said: ↑

I believe Jerry Crasnick discarded his other article, "Astros' lineup a non-existent bunch". The current rotation, if given the lineup of Astros 5-10 years ago, would put this team in contention for a playoff spot. Unfortunately, they'll put up good ERAs and no run support.

At least with the Rockets, things can change quickly by adding just one impact player. With the Astros, where are you going to find enough hitters to do anything?
Click to expand...

Thing is, as long as you're smart and willing to spend, it really doesn't take more than a couple years to rebuild a farm system. Obviously the problem is it takes ANOTHER couple years for those guys to be ready for the bigs, but you can always trade blue chippers for good, established players who are getting close to free agency.

I think though, it'll be a while before the Astros are ready to be serious contenders. Long enough that now's probably a good time to find a taker for Wandy. And in fact, ANY player on the roster who can net some good prospects. Seriously, what I would do is slash payroll and spend a lot -- like, unprecedented amounts -- on amateur scouting, player development, the draft, and latin prospects.

I'm not a 'stros fan, so it's a lot easier for me to say this, obviously.

Poloshirtbandit · Mar 18, 2011

meh said: ↑

I believe Jerry Crasnick discarded his other article, "Astros' lineup a non-existent bunch". The current rotation, if given the lineup of Astros 5-10 years ago, would put this team in contention for a playoff spot. Unfortunately, they'll put up good ERAs and no run support.

At least with the Rockets, things can change quickly by adding just one impact player. With the Astros, where are you going to find enough hitters to do anything?
Click to expand...

Hopefully Carlos has a better season than last year.

dharocks said: ↑

And in fact, ANY player on the roster who can net some good prospects. Seriously, what I would do is slash payroll and spend a lot -- like, unprecedented amounts -- on amateur scouting, player development, the draft, and latin prospects.

I'm not a 'stros fan, so it's a lot easier for me to say this, obviously.
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That's what they've started doing since last season. We've still got a way to go, but I like the direction the team is going.

rockets934life · Mar 18, 2011

I'll say this, at this time last year who in the right mind would have picked the Padres to push the eventual World Champions until the last day of the regular season? They had little to no offense from anyone not named Adrian Gonzalez and a decent bench. Their pitching was out of this world and it carried them a long way.

Stros can make some noise but their pitching and defense has to be elite to get there. Honestly, a middle of the order of Pence, Lee, Wallace and Johnson should be better then what the Padres put out last year on an every day basis. The keys will be the young guys stepping up and Bourn getting back to 2009 form.

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